Archives for March 2016

The spring storm season is underway, and parts of El DOrado and Butler County got an early taste of it yesterday. KWCH is reporting that at least one home was damaged after golf ball sized hail fell and broke windows on a home near El Dorado Lake. Also lots of damage to cars was reported. The hail fell at about 3pm near Southeast 50th Street and Bluestem Road.

A Navy veteran seeking to get five of his children back from state custody in Kansas says his use of medical marijuana to treat PTSD, not the family’s past scrapes with the law, prompted the state’s action. Raymond Schwab has campaigned at the Statehouse to get his children back. State officials have not specified why the children were removed, but say Schwab isn’t telling the truth about it being because of marijuana.

The Sedgwick County Sheriff’s office says that a detention corporal has been arrested on multiple counts of unlawful sexual relations with an inmate. Sheriff Jeff Easter said yesterday that authorities received a complaint from a third party on March 25th that a corporal at the Sedgwick County Jail and a female inmate had sexual contact. Easter said that the corporal, who has not been identified, was arrested Wednesday.

The governor is seeking improvements to the revenue forecasting system after the state’s monthly estimates became overly optimistic during the past year. Governor Sam Brownback’s administration says it will consult with experts in other states to identify potential changes. The state missed revenue targets for 11 out of the past 12 months.

Governor Sam Brownback has until April 8th to act on a school funding plan approved by legislators in hopes of satisfying a recent state Supreme Court order. The Republican-dominated Legislature delivered the bill to the GOP governor’s office Tuesday. The high court ruled last month that Kansas isn’t giving poor districts their fair share of more than $4 billion in annual state aid.

In what could be a huge blow to the Wichita economy, agribusiness giant Cargill says it’s considering moving several of its operations. The company, however, has not said if it has plans to find other locations within Wichita or move out of the city. Spokesperson Mike Martin told the Wichita Eagle that the company is looking at a variety of options. Cargill currently calls Wichita home for it’s beef business, it’s turkey and cooked meat operations, and its food distribution services.

Kansas Democrats are protesting a bill passed in response to a state Supreme Court ruling that found the current school finance formula was inequitable. In their protest, Democrats say the bill passed last week benefits wealthier districts over poorer districts and doesn’t consider the actual cost of public education.

Concerns are mounting over freeze damage to winter wheat crops in western Kansas after temperatures plummeted in recent days. Unseasonably hot temperatures in February caused the wheat to come out of dormancy weeks earlier than normal, making the crop more vulnerable to cold.

The biggest wildfire in Kansas history has been largely contained, but authorities say more homes were damaged than originally thought. The Kansas Adjutant General’s Office says nine Barber County homes were destroyed. Earlier estimates showed anywhere from two to six homes were destroyed in the county, which suffered the most damage in Kansas.

Firefighters grappling with the biggest wildfire in Kansas history got a welcomed Easter assist from pre-dawn snow that blanketed the hardest-hit area. The National Weather Service says about a half an inch of precipitation in the form of rain and snow fell early Sunday southwest of Wichita in Barber County. Shawna Hartman, a Kansas Forest Service spokeswoman, says roughly one-third of that blaze has been contained.